Ukrainian soldiers fighting in Russia's Kursk region have described scenes "like a horror movie" as they retreated from the front lines. The BBC has received extensive accounts from Ukrainian troops,

The partial withdrawal—from the town of Sudzha and other villages inside Kursk—is a blow to Ukraine’s military leadership. But it is not quite the complete disaster claimed by Russian propaganda, which Donald Trump inexplicably decided to amplify in a social-media post claiming that “thousands of Ukrainian soldiers” were “completely surrounded”.

Ukrainian soldiers talked about the “catastrophic” withdrawal of troops, a “collapse” of the structure as Ukraine lost Sudzha, the largest town it held.